The Return of Constantine
by ercys girl
Summary: HELL GAVE HIM LIFE, AND NOW THEY WANT TO TAKE IT AWAY.rnConstantine is back but this time things are going to get personal. He must save the world once again when the balance between good and evil is tipped.
1. Default Chapter

A piece of paper blew along the street the was wind blowing strongly, so strongly in fact that the store signs creaked. The solitary piece of paper travelled a few more yards before it stopped at the feet of a man, he stepped forwards walking towards an apartment complex, as he did the paper continued on it's journey.

As he got closer, he could sense something stirring. He stopped; looking around he turned and made his way towards an alleyway. _'Here'_ he thought _'but where?'_

Suddenly a bat-like creature flew out at him, it caught him off guard.

"Asshole" he cried as he tried to fight back, "Son of a bitch".

Still the creature attacked, he lunged again. The creature flew off, he paused again, slightly breathless from the encounter.

"Shit" he said as he turned around on the spot evidently annoyed that the creature had pounced on him.

"You had to do it now didn't you?" he shouted, "You couldn't have waited, could you?"

He looked to where the creature was flying in the sky.

"And now, I have to send you back" he said more subdued than he was before. He looked back at the apartment building before turning and running after the creature, leaving behind the reason for his visit to the neighbourhood.

Inside the apartment building a woman was going about her daily business, she had the radio on and she was singing along to the music like she did everyday.

"One way or another I'm gonna see ya…" she sang dancing along "I'm gonna get ya get ya get ya get ya…"

The phone began to ring, she stopped almost startled by the noise, realising it was only the phone she turned the radio down, still dancing along to the song, she allowed the answer machine to kick in.

'_Hi you've reached Jane Cordaye, sorry I can't get to the phone right now, but leave your name, number and message and I'll call you back.'_ She laughed when she heard the message, she always did.

**_BEEP _**the machine clicked to record

"**Hello Jane, Jane its Greg." **She rolled her eyes and went back to the stereo

**"Listen about the photographs you sent to us"**

The message continued, she shook her head

**"We're really sorry but they just aren't what we're looking for at the moment"**

"Oh come on just say it," she shouted at the machine "Say they're shit"

"**So if you want to send us some more at a later date then that would be fine, thanks, call me."** **_BEEP_**, the message ended

"Asshole" Jane sat down on the sofa "don't know what the hell they're talking about" she said to herself.

She picked up the newspaper from the table beside her; turning the pages she checked the weather report for the day.

"Sunshine" she exclaimed "Excellent"

She threw it on to the sofa as she stood up. She walked to the door, stopping she picked up her keys, put on her jacket and grabbed her camera.

"Maybe I can get some shots in today," she said as she opened the door.

She walked out and closed it behind her.


	2. Chapter Two

Jane made her way along the street, camera in hand ready to snap the perfect picture. There were a lot of people around that morning, more than usual. The streets were busy, the stores dotted along the way had people going in and out every second, the sunshine was bright too, and the breeze, the breeze was pretty strong. In fact it was more like wind.

Jane made her way past all the stores and the people, looking at the window displays as she passed.

'_I must get my dry cleaning done'_ she thought as she passed the window of the Laundromat.

Continuing on her way she eventually came to the end of the road, turning left she walked through a gate and into a park.

She must have walked about halfway down the vast park before stopping.

"Here I think," she said out loud.

She put her bag on the grass and looked around her, there were couples picnicking and children playing, everyone seemed carefree. She looked over to where a playgroup was obviously on a day out with the teachers; raising her camera to her eye she put it into focus. She began snapping away taking photos of the playgroup, the couples, the families, everything and anything that caught her eye.

As she was zooming in on a father and his son in the distance something caught her eye, in the corner of the frame she could see a man, he seemed to be looking at her, but she couldn't seem to make his face out clearly.

She put her camera down and looked to where she had saw him standing. There was no one there, suddenly a great gust of wind blew through the trees, and it seemed to whisper to her.

'_Constantine' _she heard, turning around suddenly, nothing. Pausing for a second she looked quite nervous, slowly she turned back around, as she did she noticed that many of the people had left.

How long had she been standing there? She didn't know. Picking up her things she turned and began walking.

'_Strange'_ she thought _'there was definitely someone there'_

Shaking her head she walked back out through the gateway and made her way back home, back along the street, past the Laundromat. _'Odd' _she said to herself, looking around. The streets were once again empty.

She opened the door to her apartment and threw her coat onto a chair that stood in the corner of the hall, she walked into the sitting room and put her keys on the table and her bag on the floor, still holding her camera she walked over to her answer machine. There was a message she pressed the play button.

'_Hi you've reached Jane Cordaye, sorry I can't get to the phone right now, but leave your name, number and message and I'll call you back.' **BEEP**_

Silence

Jane shook her head "I hate when people do that" she commented to herself. She went to press erase, suddenly she heard a voice whisper in the background of the message

'**_Constantine' _**it said. Jane stopped, she remembered hearing that same thing in the park. She stopped the machine and grabbed her camera.

She hurried to a door in the hall of her apartment and opened the door, she switched the light on – it was a dark room. Closing the door behind her she took the film out of her camera and tossed it into the corner. She prepared the slides for processing, slowly she dipped each piece of paper into the chemical trays, and slowly the pictures began appearing. One by one Jane hung them up to dry. There was only one picture she was interested in.

"Where the hell is it?" she asked herself aloud "A-ha found it"

She picked up the photograph and studied it, in the corner she could see a small image, but she couldn't make out what it was. She looked towards the shelf in front of her; quickly she grabbed hold of a magnifying glass. Using it she looked once more at the image, she put the photo down in disbelief, the image was the man she had seen in her camera frame, but this time she could see he was pointing directly at her.

"What the hell" she exclaimed unnervingly, still holding the picture and magnifying glass she opened the door and walked back in to the hall, she pushed the door shut and made her way to the sofa. Sitting down she placed the photograph and the magnifier onto the coffee table. She perched herself on the edge of the seat her eyes fixated at the image in the corner of the picture. Was it real? She asked herself over again still unable to determine whether what she had seen was her imagination or if it was as she had asked real.

She must have been sitting there for sometime as the next thing she knew the clock on the wall began to chime. 7pm. She looked at it, standing she decided to take a closer look at the picture. She walked down the hall again and went to another door; opening it she turned the light on. Her bed was still unmade form that morning and her clothes were laying around draped over a chair and scattered at the foot of her wardrobe. Sitting on the bed she reached over to the little shelving unit next to the wall, she stretched a little further, biting her bottom lip and looking puzzled. Her hand was moving around under the unit, it hit something, she grasped hold if it and pulled it up. She sat up and looked at the case she had been looking for, unzipping it she lifted the lid, inside was her laptop. Picking it up out of the case she held it close to her and stood up, slowly she made her way back to the sofa.

Once she had sat down she took the photo and placed it next to her, and switched her computer on, then she reached under the coffee table and grabbed a piece of machinery – it was her scanner – slowly she dragged it over the photograph, slowly the image loaded up onto the screen. She highlighted the corner where the man was standing and enlarged the picture, as the image began to load her eyes became wide. She sat looking at the picture in disbelief.

"Oh my Go…" she managed to exclaim in a hushed whisper.

Still she didn't know how to explain what she saw.

She remembered seeing them many years before, too scared to tell anyone else, it became her little secret. Gradually they disappeared and she spent many years forgetting them, but now, today, she saw them again. Once again she was scared, but for a different reason, this time they knew her, they saw her.

She switched of the computer and tossed it to one side she couldn't look at it any more. She stood, the tears in her eyes fighting to get out. She reached for the phone. Dialling she began to cry, why her? Why now? The phone rang.

"Hello operator" said the person on the other end of the line

"Uh yes hello" she said stifling the panic "I'd like to be put through to…" she didn't finish

There was a knock at the door, she turned, slowly she stood and made her way cautiously towards it, the phone still in her hand, she cried, the tears were fearful, the tears of a scared little girl.

She reached her hand out to the handle, standing behind the door using it as a small piece of protection she turned the handle and opened the door slightly.

She looked through the opening, outside was a man she looked closer. He was quite tall around 6ft, with dark hair and brown eyes; he was dressed in black with a white shirt and tie. Shaking she opened to door a little more. He was looking down the hall intensely, it was almost as if he was staring at something.

"Yes" she whispered clearing her throat "Yes, can I help you?"

The man turned and looked at her, she looked at him.

"May I come in?" he asked

Jane was take aback he was quite straight to the point, "why?" she asked, "who are you?"

The man noticed her distress

"Are you alright?" he asked her

"I'm fine" she replied guardedly

"I need to talk to you?" he told her dropping his voice to a gentle whisper

"What about?"

"I can't say out here, can I come in?"

Jane looked him up and down he seemed genuine enough.

"Okay" she said, stepping back she allowed the door to be opened further "come in"

The man smiled "Thank you". He entered the apartment and closed the door behind.

Jane walked in to the sitting room, the man following her inside, she sat down, and he sat too. Jane looked at him.

"What are you here for?" she asked

"I'm here to find out if it's true" he replied looking at the photograph that was on the floor

"If what's true?"

"That you can see" he replied picking the picture up and looking at it intently "Where was this taken?" he looked up at her

"In the park, today. Why?" she looked at him with a slight air of mystery

"Just wanted to know". He placed the photo on the table

"Who are you?" Jane asked him again

"I'm John. John Constantine, Jane and I'm here to help" he replied looking at her

"Constantine?" she said to herself, she looked at him as he said her name "How do know me?"

"I was contacted by a friend he said you needed my help"

"I, I. I do?" she questioned him

Constantine stood up and walked over to her, he knelt down beside her and took her hand, he looked in to her eyes.

"What did you see?" he asked her

She looked away from him, her tears began to fall again, she didn't want to tell him, she couldn't, but how did he know she had saw something?

He held her hand tighter. "It's okay, I believe you," he said softly

She turned to look at him, looking in to his eyes she could see him, she believed him.

"I'll show you," she whispered. She reached for her computer and placed it on the table. She switched it on and loaded the picture it appeared on the screen.

She looked at it they were still there. She took a deep breath and looked at Constantine, he was looking intently at the picture.

"Do you see it?" she asked once again distressed by the image

"I see them" Constantine replied, "This was today?"

"A few hours ago"

Constantine shook his head "The sons of bitches" he exclaimed "Shit, shit, shit" he stood up

"What's wrong? What is it?" asked Jane

"Those things you see, they're Hells messengers" Constantine replied

It wasn't the response Jane had expected. Before she had time to ask Constantine looked at her "How long?"

"What?" she looked confused

"How long have you seen?"

"Seen what?"

"The truth" Constantine looked at her with the same look as before, she had to tell him

"A while" Jane offered

"A while?" asked Constantine smiling "What the fuck is that? A while? How long? How long have you known goddamn it?"

Jane felt quietly insecure but felt she needed to answer him "I saw them for the first time when I was ten" she said turning away from him.

Constantine looked at her; she stood up and walked to the window.

"I didn't tell anyone because I was scared, scared of what they would say and of what I saw, so I pretended I didn't" she looked out of the window

Constantine walked over behind her and placed his hand on her shoulder as an offering of comfort. Jane didn't look at him, "Gradually I didn't see them any more, and over the past few years I've tried to forget, but I saw them again today" she turned to Constantine "Why, why do I see them?"

He moved beside her, taking his hand from her shoulder. Jane looked out of he window once again, Constantine looked out too "I don't know" he replied

"You see them"

"Yes"

"How long?"

"For as long I can remember"

"How? How do you see them too?"

"I was clinically dead for two minutes when I was younger, I saw hell, saw the things that lived there, and ever since then I've been able to see them"

Jane turned to face him

"Can anyone else see them? John, can they?"

"I thought I was the only one"

"But you aren't?"

"There's you"

Jane looked at him; he turned and looked at her

"You were never dead were you?" he asked her

Jane shook her head

Constantine turned away again

"Why? What does it matter that I never died?" asked Jane

Constantine sighed

"John what? Tell me"

He looked at her; she already knew what he was going to say

"They want you"

Jane's heart sunk, she knew it would come to this; she looked out on to the street below. Constantine saw the pain on her face, he put his arm around her once again to try and offer her comfort.

"Why me?" she asked

"My guess they have plans again"

"Who has plans?"

"Lucifer, Hell. But they won't get you"

Jane looked at him "What you're going to save my sorry ass?"

"I'll try" Constantine assured her.

He looked out of the window and saw it. It was coming, but he didn't know when, all he knew was he had to prevent it, and prevent them from getting to Jane.


End file.
